1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to methods and apparatus for employing a flowable granular material, along with its natural angle of repose in a field of force, such as gravity, as a basis for establishing other forces which may be put to a useful purpose such as in moving an article.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In Ancient Egypt the ruling dynasties erected giant structures, such as stone obelisks and pyramids, to honor themselves and their deities. It is well known that the technologies to erect these structures have been lost, and many theories have been proposed in modern times to account for these engineering feats. The xe2x80x9csand enginexe2x80x9d of the present invention could have been employed to raise or orient the giant obelisks, but there is no evidence that such technology was actually known or used.
The present invention relates to the discovery of the technology that is useful in many ways and could have been employed to move and raise giant stone obelisks, as well as other articles.
The present invention provides a method and related apparatus for utilizing the force of gravity operating on a partially constrained agglomeration of flowable particulate material to produce a useful power output, which can be enhanced or reduced in order to effect desired movement of an article. Depending upon the physical orientation of the article, such movement may be purely translational, purely rotational or a combination of translational and rotational movement.
By providing the flowable particulate material in the desired quantity and position, efficient movement of a wide variety of articles either along a level path or an upwardly inclined path or a downwardly inclined or vertical path may be provided.
A wide variety of applications are contemplated.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an effective method and associated apparatus for employing a quantity of flowable particulate material to provide a force of a predetermined desired direction and magnitude in order to effect movement of an article in a desired path.
It is another object of the present invention to provide such a system which will enable those skilled in the art to custom design the application of the method and apparatus to a particular need.
It is an object of this invention to provide an engine that utilizes the force of gravity operating on a constrained agglomeration of flowable granular material to produce a directed useful power output.
It is another object of this invention to provide power output that can be executed with magnified or reduced force or torque in comparison to the characteristics of the power input.
It is a further object of the present invention to employ the method and apparatus of the present invention to a wide variety of applications, including, for example, children""s toys, educational devices, amusement devices, engineering applications and commercial and industrial applications.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide such methods and systems which will be economical to employ.
These and other objects of the invention will be fully understood from the following description of the invention with reference to the drawings appended hereto.